San Diego Athena Dba Athena

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
261656541
IRS 990 coverage
2014–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024
Location
San Diego, CA, USA
Phone
8585688010
Rating
46
Verdict
MIXED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Employment N.E.C.

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$744,141
Expenses
$676,942
Assets
$837,004
Liabilities
$229,706

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

22 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Holly Smithson (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • Holly Smithson (CEO): $228,764 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Athena is a global, non-profit, advocacy organization that fast-tracks women in STEM through its portfolio of leadership programs and advocacy initiatives.By transforming women working in STEM into corporate leaders, Athena is widening the bridge to advance 1 million women leading in STEM, by 2030. With its 25+ year history anchored in Californias global STEM hub, Athena is now accelerating innovation worldwide, through gender equality.

What it reported doing in 2024

ATHENA'S LIFTING WHILE CLIMBING SUMMITAthena's 3rd Annual Lifting While Climbing Summit offers a transformative experience as we ignite the leadership demands of our global STEM workforce. Whether you're looking to elevate your career, hone your leadership skills, or scale your company through diversity and inclusion, this summit offers access to modern-day leadership, timely workforce needs and the savvy career tactics essential to advance your growth while making a positive impact on the world around you. Join us and embark on a riveting journey of high-growth, limitless possibility, and innovation through equality. Grab your proverbial hiking shoes and join Athenas 3rd Annual Lifting While Climbing Summit on September 18 at San Diego State University's Montezuma Hall, where you can expect to: Assess the full range of career impacts you can make by lifting others in your workplaceIdentify the key steps and targeted behaviors essential to scaling new heights in your STEM careerAdopt the leadership principles and techniques of modern day leaders and alliesDeepen capacity to accelerate inclusive leaders that recognize innovation knows no gender

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 90% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Cannot be determined from the filing. The filing does not provide enough consistent spending detail to tell whether the nonprofit works directly or through others.

The verdict

MIXED - Program spending has grown recently. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and a relatively small share of voting board members are independent.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 44
  • Transparency & Controls: 49
  • Accountability: 31
  • Sustainability: 46
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 48.4%; rating input score 48
  • Program expense ratio: 53.3%; rating input score 53
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 81.8%; rating input score 82; 1st percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Limited
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 0%; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 9%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.24; rating input score 50; 50th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.27; rating input score 26; 26th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 33.8%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.2% per year; rating input score 100; 27th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 4.8% per year; rating input score 100; 42nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 9.3% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 48.4% of revenue deployed · 53.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 0 of 22 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 2 filed program accomplishments · $677K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $229K · 22 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 20 of 22 current checks pass · 2 findings to review
  • Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes executive pay
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2014 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 48/100.
  • High — Accountability: Independent voting board scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 53/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 59/100.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Functional expense sum did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Part IX AllOtherExpenses column sum did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 50/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 5/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 26/100.